I think a lot of the debate here stems from how much weight we should place on statements made by others.

One off statements are not to go by on default.

Quote:

Reed Richards is obviously a knowledgeable guy and knows Thor very well. He has less knowledge of Superman's powers though. He said that "perhaps" Superman was the most powerful hero. How much importance should we put on that statement? Personally, I wouldn't put much importance on it. It's a general statement, and Reed was likely speaking loosely. It was hardly a scientific analysis. But you seem to give it a lot of weight, which is your prerogative.

And Jurgens too going by his statement that Superman is more powerful than Thor.

Quote:

I'm sure you can go back into the decades of history and find comments (often times conflicting) about such and such character being "the most powerful."

Quote:

If you would like to place a lot of importance on what characters say, you should also examine Superman's comments after wielding Mjolnir. "Oh my Lord, the Power! Never felt so - Never would have guessed - ". That says more to me than Reed's statement.

Superman never said Thor is more powerful than Thor. Superman said the same exact thing with Captain Marvel too BTW.

He is a humble guy.

Quote:

I give a lot more importance to actual encounters. The two have fought once. In JLA vs. Avengers. And Superman won that fight. This victory implied things that most fans already knew, believed, and/or at least suspected. It showed Superman could beat Thor. If I recall correctly, Thor didn't really use his lightning, other energy projection, or more exotic powers here.

Then you should check again. Thor indeed used lightning.

And Superman didn't use his speed, freeze breath and a lot of other powers he can use.

Quote:

I am a Thor fan and I acknowledge that Superman could beat Thor. It doesn't mean he would beat Thor every time. 1 sample is not a trend.

Nobody said that. Superman would be a favorite in almost all encounters though.

Thor doesn't use lightning on panel. And Busiek says that Superman probably uses speed off panel. And as Gladiator learns, freeze breath won't work agains Thor.